US president touting legislation as ‘birthday present for America’ and will sign at White House Fourth of July event
Donald Trump is expected to sign his sweeping spending package into law on Friday during a Fourth of July picnic at the White House, setting up significant cutbacks on federal safety-net programs and increasing funds for aggressive immigration enforcement.
Trump has touted the legislation’s passage as a “birthday present for America”, speakingbefore a crowd at a campaign-style rally in Iowa on Thursday evening, even as Democrats expressed their displeasure at the spending package.
The Slovenian is aiming to hammer home his recent supremacy when the pair lock in battle through the race
It was not so long ago that Tadej Pogacar was Jonas Vingegaard’s whipping boy. It came on the brutal Col de la Loze, in July 2023, when the Slovenian, dropped by another violent Vingegaard acceleration, announced wearily into his team radio: “I’m gone, I’m dead.”
By last summer, as the recent Netflix series Unchained reveals, the tables had turned. Pogacar barked angry insults at the Dane after Vingegaard refused to make the pace with him on the gravel stage around Troyes. He went on to dominate the race and win his third Tour de France by more than six minutes.
Province’s language police had a petite contretemps when it challenged Montreal transit agencies use of word on buses
Quebec’s mercurial and controversial language police have decided that using the word “go” is a legitimate way to cheer on sports teams in the province, paving the way for excited fans – and Montreal’s transit agency - to celebrate without fear of recrimination.
In new guidelines, the Office Québécois de la Langue Française (OQLF, the Quebec Board of the French Language) said that “go” was now “partially legitimized”, according to reporting by the Canadian Press, although the language watchdog says it prefers the French equivalent: allez.
The coach will want his side to shift up a gear and the arrival of his son to the squad guarantees a competitive edge
The stakes are intensifying on all fronts with the first Test now just a fortnight away. The British & Irish Lions are still trying to construct the fundamental forward pillars underpinning their game while some key Wallaby figures are nursing injuries and are missing from their side’s warm-up game against Fiji. These are the moments when, behind the scenes, elite coaches really earn their money.
Despite two comfortable victories on Australian soil so far, Andy Farrell will certainly be wanting his side to shift everything up a gear, both for the sake of the collective and their own individual ambitions. For one or two this is in effect a final trial for places in the Test matchday 23, particularly so in certain fiercely contested positions.
5th over: England 34-0 (Dunkley 23, Wyatt-Hodge 9) Shree Charani into the attack with her left-arm spin. Dunkley picks up four over midwicket and then plays an absolute doozy of a straight drive for SIX! That was a really excellent shot, Dunkley held the pose and rightly so.
4th over: England 22-0 (Dunkley 11, Wyatt-Hodge 9) Deepti Sharma into the attack, she whirls through an over in double quick time for the cost of just two singles. Quiet start for England, they might chance their arm a bit now.
Germany improved after a disappointing first-half display to see off major-tournament newbies Poland in St Gallen
… but before kick-off, there’s a minute of silence to be perfectly observed. Both teams huddle. Then the warmest round of applause. Oh Diogo. Oh André. Our hearts break for you. xx
The teams are out. Germany in white shirts and black shorts, Poland decked out from head to toe in red. We’ll be off once coins have been tossed, fists bumped, and pennants exchanged.
EU says it ‘favours a negotiated solution’ but is prepared for potential trade war with retaliatory duties
Donald Trump threatened to impose 17% tariffs on food and farm produce exports from Europe during talks in Washington this week, it has emerged.
Such tariffs would hit everything from Belgian chocolate to Kerrygold butter from Ireland and olive oil from Italy, Spain and France, all big sellers in the US.
Sweden opened their Euro 2025 campaign with a diligent win over Denmark in Geneva. Filippa Angeldahl scored the only goal in the game to give Peter Gerhardsson’s side an early advantage in Group C.
It took one moment of carefully crafted play from two of Sweden’s seasoned stars to finally unlock the hard-working Denmark defence. Angeldahl had looked the most likely to find the breakthrough as she grew in influence. Her well-timed one-two with Kosovare Asllani and the finish that followed was an example of how creative this Sweden team can be when they put their minds to it.
Wicketkeeper hits unbeaten 184 but India in charge
Pressure? What pressure? Or to pinch a line from Keith Miller, the great Australian all-rounder and a fighter pilot during the second world war: “There is no pressure in Test cricket. Real pressure is when you are flying a Mosquito with a Messerschmitt up your arse.”
Notwithstanding this old truism, there was still a fair bit on the line when Jamie Smith strode out to middle at 11.12am here on the third morning. Joe Root had been uncharacteristically strangled down leg, Ben Stokes had been blown away by a brutish first ball and Mohammed Siraj, a fiery fast bowler known to get on a roll, was eyeing up a hat-trick. Oh, and England were 84 for five, 503 runs behind India’s first innings.
Lionesses captain admits much has changed since 2022 with the manager stressing that team has to move on as they prepare for France
Leah Williamson said she had felt anxious in the buildup to England beginning their European title defence against France on Saturday night, the Arsenal defender having missed the 2023 World Cup after an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
“I’ve probably held some anxiety up until this moment just because I wanted to be here and I wanted to be here with the team and I wanted to experience another tournament with England,” said the Lionesses’ captain. “It’s special when you come to another country, to represent your country and just take everything in. It’s a bit different to England in 2022. I’m very excited but so much has changed, so I’m intrigued to come back and enjoy this tournament football.”
Aston Villa and Barcelona also punished over finances
Villa confident they can absorb fine and strengthen
Chelsea, Aston Villa and Barcelona have been fined by Uefa for breaking financial rules. Chelsea have been hit with a €31m (£27m) fine, with a potential further €60m looming over the next four years if they fail to comply with regulations again. They also face doubts over whether they will be able to register new signings in European competitions over the next two seasons.
Villa have been fined a total of €11m with a further €15m suspended for the next three years. Barcelona have been fined €15m and are also at risk of further conditional penalties.
Exclusive: Chancellor says she never considered resigning and warns ‘there are costs’ to welfare bill U-turn
Rachel Reeves has said it is impossible for her to rule out tax rises in the autumn budget and insisted she never thought about quitting despite a turbulent week for her and the government.
In an interview with the Guardian, the chancellor said “there are costs” to the watering down of the welfare bill and acknowledged it had been a “damaging” week for Downing Street.
American will challenge incumbent in December vote
Mayer accuses Ben Sulayem of centralising power
Tim Mayer opened his campaign for the FIA presidency in combative fashion by accusing his election rival and the incumbent, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, of overseeing a “reign of terror” during his four years in charge.
Mayer, the son of the co-founder of the McLaren F1 team Teddy Mayer and a former longstanding FIA steward, with 15 years in the role in F1, maintains he was sacked at Ben Sulayem’s behest. He issued a withering assessment of the president’s tenure as he aired his platform for the vote, which will be held on 12 December.
Amid the mountain metaphors, head coach Rhian Wilkinson says her players are ready for opener against the Netherlands
Lucerne is noted primarily for its majestic lake and gorgeous medieval city centre, but it is also a part of central Switzerland where gently rolling hills give way to jagged Alpine peaks. For Wales, this tourist magnet marks the potentially awkward junction between the heady optimism of an exhilarating journey towards their first major tournament and the reality of the formidable challenge posed by Saturday’s opening match against the Netherlands.
Perhaps appropriately, Mount Pilatus towers above Stadion Allmend where Wales kick-off their Group D campaign. But the good news for their fans is that Rhian Wilkinson, the head coach, believes mountains are there for climbing. Indeed, Wilkinson clambered up Snowdon before announcing her squad for the tournament on the mountain’s summit last month.
From blockbuster movies like Jurassic World Rebirth to documentary series, the appetite for these ancient creatures appears inexhaustible
On-screen discussions of DNA and off-screen scientific consultants notwithstanding, no one goes to see a Jurassic Park movie for its realism. Yet one of the less convincing moments in Jurassic World Rebirth, the latest in the franchise, is unrelated to oversized velociraptors. It’s the palaeontologist Dr Henry Loomis complaining of shrinking public interest in his field.
This spring, the BBC revived its 1999 hit series Walking With Dinosaurs. Not a week goes by without headlines announcing the discovery of a new species or new theories on how they behaved. Publishers produce an endless stream of dino-related fact and fiction, particularly for children. Palaeontology – at least when focused on the dinosaurs of the Mesozoic, or our hominin forebears – has long exerted an extraordinary hold on the public imagination.
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Experts worry the tax-and-spending bill will gut healthcare and hospitals, especially in states like North Carolina
When Hurricane Helene drowned western North Carolina in muck and floodwater last year, it caught folks off-guard.
Now, local leaders in places like Asheville expect the Republican-led reconciliation bill – called the “big, beautiful bill” by Donald Trump – to bear down on rural America. And they wonder whether people are missing the warning signs.
Squad strife and a lack of team ethic have left a talented nation laden with doubt as they hunt a first major trophy
“I want people to stop asking me: ‘Why haven’t France won anything when you’re one of the best teams in the world?’” Marie-Antoinette Katoto, like all her teammates, has only one dream this summer: to win the Euros.
To do that, though, they have to come to terms with a history of tournament failures with the most recent one coming at the home Olympics last year, when they were knocked out by Brazil at the quarter-final stage. “We have had opportunities and twice failed to win it at home in France. We have to have the humility to admit that,” admits Sakina Karchaoui, one of the team’s vice-captains, referring also to the 2019 World Cup on home soil, when they lost to the USA in the quarter-finals.
It’s the most anticipated tour date in recent memory, bringing Noel and Liam Gallagher back together on stage for the first time since 2009. See it unfold here – from setlist to stadium singalongs
While the Oasis subreddit is overspilling with speculation and excitement about the first gigs of the reunion tour, the Cardiff subreddit has been driven up the wall by banal questions from non-locals about travel logistics. It’s inspired increasingly deranged spoof posts about the so-called Organisation for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards, that green Oasis® foam used for floral arrangements, the fruity soft drink Oasis and where you can weigh your sister in the city … geddit … oh-weigh-sis.
Fans have been soaking up the atmosphere – though I’m not sure that cardboard Liam is too happy about it.
Peter Gerhardsson: This tournament will mark the end of the Sweden head coach’s eight-year spell in charge of his country, a period in which he led his team to third plac e in two World Cups, an Olympic silver medal and a semi-final place at the Euros. Despite these impressive achievements, he will, however, be best remembered as the bloke who accidentally wandered into a broom cupboard following a press conference at the last World Cup.
As Ella Lindvall pointed out in her team guide to Sweden, it was an error which was immortalised in cartoon form by the legendary David Squires, much to the genuine delight of Gerhardsson. After this tournament, he – Gerhardsson, not Squires – will be replaced by the former Australia head coach Tony Gustavsson.
Jennifer Geerlings-Simons, 71, will run unopposed as one of the poorest countries in the region eyes billions of dollars
Suriname is expected to elect its first female president this Sunday, the congresswoman and physician Jennifer Geerlings-Simons, 71, who will run unopposed after the ruling party decided not to field a candidate.
Geerlings-Simons will succeed current president Chandrikapersad Santokhi, 66, who has been in office since 2020 and was eligible for re-election – but whose party failed to secure the two-thirds parliamentary majority required in the country’s indirect voting system.
Tehran now places little faith in the European countries who played a key role in brokering the Iranian nuclear deal
Exposed as divided and marginalised during the Iran crisis, European nations are scrambling to retrieve a place at the Middle East negotiating table, fearing an impulsive Donald Trump has diminishing interest in stabilising Iran or the wider region now he believes he has achieved his key objective of wiping out Tehran’s nuclear programme.
On Tuesday the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, was the latest senior European figure to phone the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, offering to be a facilitator and urging Tehran not to leave the crisis in a dangerous limbo by keeping UN weapons inspectors out of Iran.
Under Andrea Stella’s astute leadership, McLaren have bounced back from rock bottom, and Norris and Piastri will be the star attractions this weekend
As a celebration of a sporting revival, McLaren might consider this year’s British Grand Prix a chance to revel in finally returning as the headline act at Formula One’s Glastonbury. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will take centre stage at Silverstone as overwhelming favourites; after more than a decade in the wilderness, there is real optimism that it’s finally coming home for McLaren.
Half a million fans are expected at Silverstone over the weekend and while no one is quite counting chickens – not least as rain may play a part on Sunday – 10 years on from what might be considered a nadir for the team, the transformation at McLaren to put them in this position has been remarkable. In 2015 when the current team principal, Andrea Stella, joined as trackside head of operations they entered the season 5.1 seconds off pole in Australia and finished the year in ninth place.
Voters may feel hotter summers are ‘too much’ but they appear to tolerate roll-back of policies to stop global heating
“It’s just too much, isn’t it?” says Julie, a retiree in Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, about the 42C (107.6F) heat that her brother had seen scorch Spain last week. The former local government worker has felt summers get hotter over her lifetime and says she “couldn’t stand” such high heat herself.
But like many who experienced Europe’s first heatwave of the summer, Julie does not sound overly alarmed. She worries about climate breakdown for young people, but is not concerned about herself. She thinks more climate action would be nice, but does not know what can be done about it. She does not have much faith in the government.
A life of passive ‘perfection’, in which you minister to your partner and don’t speak unless spoken to, is a nauseating prospect that leaves women dangerously vulnerable
Do you wish you were a princess? Do you crave being cosseted and showered with gifts, having every door opened and every chair pulled out? Perhaps you’d rather not pay for your clothes; maybe you’re sick of deciding what to eat and where.
Courtney Palmer can help. The self-proclaimed housewife princess has a series of TikTok videos on “princess treatment” and how to get it. It’s a matter of accepting compliments graciously, dressing the part, being unapologetically good to yourself (disappointingly, this seems to mean exercising and drinking water) but mostly ministering to your partner, who is treated as a weirdly needy and highly suggestible man-baby. Would-be princesses should create a calm, frictionless domestic paradise for their provider prince, “speaking in a feminine way – we’re not screaming, yelling; we’re not cursing”, thanking him for picking up his dirty underwear. Princess treatment is the reward and it comes in the form of diamond earrings, Chanel flats, flowers and old-school chivalry.
Like Dr John Hammond and his scientists in Jurassic Park, Gianni Infantino and his fawning Fifa lickspittles have spent recent years so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn’t stop to think if they should. The upshot is that a preposterously lucrative tournament described by its creator as “a big bang” has been crowbarred into an already jam-packed calendar. And the largesse of its in-no-way unethically sourced prize-money for those participating now threatens to destroy several already under-threat footballing ecosystems around the world.
I want to talk about my mate. My buddy. The bloke I loved and will miss like crazy. I could talk about him as a player for hours, but none of that feels like it matters right now. It’s the man. The person. He was such a good guy. The best. So genuine. Just normal and real. Full of love for the people he cared about. Full of fun. He was the most British foreign player I’ve ever met. I can’t believe we’re saying goodbye. It’s too soon, and it hurts so much. But thank you for being in my life, mate – and for making it better” – Liverpool’s Andy Robertson remembers his friend, Diogo Jota. And Miguel Dantas reports on how the deaths of Jota and his brother André Silva have shaken Portugal, where mourners are gathering in Gondomar for the funeral on Saturday.
Diogo Jota, an opponent that you’d have in your team in a heartbeat, and that’s from a Toffee” – Ian Taylor.
Regarding Chinese third-tier club Changchun Xidu and the superstitious paper charms (yesterday’s News, Bits and Bobs, full email edition). Are they effective if you want to put off a co-worker competing for the same promotion? Asking for a friend” – Steve Mintz.
Whether Nazi-punching your way through an Indiana Jones sequel or losing yourself in a beautiful fantasy world, you told us your best video game experiences of the first half of the year • The best video games of 2025 so far
Enshrouded is a beautiful combination of Minecraft, Skyrim and resource gathering that makes it at least three games in one. My daughter told me I would love it and I ignored her for too long. I’ve tackled Elden Ring, but much prefer the often gentler combat of Enshrouded. It sometimes makes me feel like an elite fighter, then other times kicks my arse in precisely the right measures.
Using emojis in text messages enhances connection and fun in close personal relationships, US study finds
The secret to a good relationship may be staring smartphone users in the face.
A new study published in the journal Plos One found that using emojis in text messages makes people feel closer and more satisfied in their personal lives.
Baking: it’s part science, part craft, part magic. A mindful escape or total mystery, depending on who you ask.
In writing The Bakers Book, a collection of recipes, kitchen notes and wisdom, I asked 36 Australian bakers for an essential piece of baking advice – a lesson that changed everything, a tip that’s always in their back pocket.
US munitions slated for Ukraine held up over shortage as Trump ‘disappointed’ by Putin’s refusal to make concessions
Donald Trump spoke with Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Friday as the US president appears increasingly disheartened over his chances of fulfilling a campaign pledge to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
The call with Zelenskyy comes as Washington has halted its latest shipment of military aid to Ukraine including Patriot air defense missiles and other crucial munitions meant to support the country’s defenses, and hours after Russia launched a devastating air attack on Kyiv using a record number of drones and ballistic missiles.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Russia would continue its war on Ukraine as it was unable to achieve its goals through “diplomatic means.”
“We are interested in achieving our goals in the course of the special military operation and it is preferable to do it by political and diplomatic means,” Peskov said, as reported by AFP.
“But until that is not possible, we are continuing the special operation.”
Ex-BBC presenter criticises failure to show documentary, accusing people at ‘the very top’ of failing over the conflict
Gary Lineker has said the BBC should “hold its head in shame” over its failure to show a documentary about the plight of medics in Gaza.
The former Match of the Day presenter said people at “the very top of the BBC” had been failing over the conflict, after the corporation’s controversial decision to drop Gaza: Doctors Under Attack.
Cycling’s governing body accused of dangerous inaction
‘People with real knowledge are pushed to the outside’
A leading Tour de France team manager, Jonathan Vaughters, has launched a scathing attack on cycling’s governing body on the eve of the race, accusing the UCI of being “unable to make good decisions when it comes to safety or the governance of the sport”.
Vaughters, who leads EF Education-Easypost and raced in four Tours as a professional, described cycling’s governing body as “managed by politicians and bureaucrats who do not understand the reality of the sport” and added that “they were put in place by the votes of other politicians who have never had their skin ripped off by the road”.
Nayib Bukele disputed claims of Ábrego García’s lawyers that he was tortured and deprived of sleep while in custody
The president of El Salvador has denied claims that Kilmar Ábrego García was subjected to beatings and deprivation while he was held in the country before being returned to the US to face human-smuggling charges.
Nayib Bukele said in a social media post that Ábrego García, the Salvadorian national who was wrongly extradited from the US to El Salvador in March before being returned in June, “wasn’t tortured, nor did he lose weight”.
Awake in the night again? From box breathing to standing on a cold bathroom floor, experts and readers offer tried and tested tips on how to calm your mind and drift back off …
Bad news for that old favourite, counting sheep. “It has been studied and it doesn’t work,” says Dr Eidn Mahmoudzadeh, a Manchester GP and co-founder of The Sleep Project, which offers support for sleeplessness at all ages. “It is too simple and mundane; people don’t carry on, they just get bored and their thoughts wander to worrying about sleep.” Counterintuitively, you should go for something more mentally challenging, he says, to distract the brain.
Five charges of rape and one charge of sexual assault
Partey denies all the charges against him
The former Arsenal footballer Thomas Partey has been charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, the Crown Prosecution Service said.
The allegations relate to three women who reported incidents between 2021 and 2022. Partey has been charged with two counts of rape of one woman, three counts of rape of a second woman, and one count of sexual assault of a third woman. He will appear at Westminster magistrates court on 5 August.
After initial concerns, pupils are said to be more focused and have better social interactions with each other
Bans on smartphones in Dutch schools have improved the learning environment despite initial protests, according to a study commissioned by the government of the Netherlands.
National guidelines, introduced in January 2024, recommend banning smartphones from classrooms and almost all schools have complied. Close to two-thirds of secondary schools ask pupils to leave their phones at home or put them in lockers, while phones are given in at the start of a lesson at one in five.
Corbyn says ‘discussions are ongoing’ after MP’s surprise announcement but he is understood to be reluctant to take title of party leader
Jeremy Corbyn has confirmed he is in discussions about creating a new leftwing political party, hours after the MP Zarah Sultana announced she was quitting Labour to co-lead the project.
Sultana, the MP for Coventry South who had the Labour whip suspended last year for voting against the government over the two-child limit on benefits, said on Thursday night she was quitting Labour and would “co-lead the founding of a new party” with Corbyn.
Dortmund’s pursuit of younger brother included hotel visit and talk of a Club World Cup meeting with Real Madrid
Jobe Bellingham was furious when he found out that the early yellow card he had been shown for a tackle on Nelson Deossa against Monterrey meant missing the next game of the Club World Cup and he was still furious the following day.
The news hit hard when he heard it at half-time heading down the tunnel, and the hurt wasn’t going away in a hurry. This was not just the next game, it was the game: Borussia Dortmund versus Real Madrid, the Bellingham brothers on the same pitch for the first time, and the match so special Dortmund used it to convince him to move to Germany in the first place. That and a disguise.
The yearly commemoration has always marked a contradiction. But despair is not a strategy: this is a moment to create change
The Fourth of July celebration of freedom rings hollow this year. The contradictions built into a national commemoration of our triumph over autocracy feel newly personal and perilous – especially to those who have, until now, felt relatively secure in the federal government’s commitment to democracy and the rule of law.
But the contradiction is far from new. Black, brown and Indigenous communities have always seen the gap between the ideals of American democracy and the lived reality of exclusion. Frederick Douglass’s 1852 address What to the Slave is the Fourth of July? demanded that Americans confront the hypocrisy of celebrating liberty while millions were enslaved. Today, those contradictions persist in enduring racial disparities and policies that perpetuate segregation, second-class citizenship and selective protection of rights.
Deborah N Archer is the president of the ACLU, the Margaret B Hoppin professor of law at NYU Law School, and the author of Dividing Lines: How Transportation Infrastructure Reinforces Racial Inequality. L Song Richardson is the former dean and currently chancellor’s professor of law at the University of California Irvine School of Law. She previously served as president of Colorado College. Susan Sturm is the George M Jaffin professor of law and social responsibility and the founding director of the Center for Institutional and Social Change at Columbia Law School and author of What Might Be: Confronting Racism to Transform Our Institutions.
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